Resistance
by FatalNightmares
Summary: Ever since they met, it has been a constant struggle to tame his favourite skylark. Along the way, he found himself more addicted to the aloof guardian, and now that the battle ended with Checker Face, his passion for Kyouya has never been so strong. When Reborn gives him orders he can't refuse, he finally wins and claims his highly anticipated prize, but was it all in vain? D18
1. Falling

**AN**: I would like to take this time to thank our wonderful editor, Blaze Takishima. Without your patience and generosity, this would have never been possible.

The first few chapters of the story I will be playing as Dino. The other half, I switch to Hibari due to changing collab partners. This story has about 30,000 words so far but only this chapter is edited. The amount of updates depends on our editor. This is a role-play inspired fan fiction but we try to make it flow like a story as much as possible. As always, I love reviews. It gives us a chance to improve and lets us know whether or not you like the story. Warnings: Yaoi, smut, violence, language, spoilers, and one pissed off Kyouya.

If you are reading this, Isikaru, I really appreciate the time I was able to role-play with you. It sparked an idea for a wonderful role-play which turned into a fan fiction. I loved it too much to pass up the opportunity to continue with someone else. That being said, it's only right to credit you for your hard work since this is half of your story as well.

To my readers, this story will be much different since I actually have an editor now. I promise you that it will get finished.

Now, happy reading and I hope you enjoy~!

_Chapter One: Falling_

A couple of months passed after the fight between Checker Face and Vongola's allies. Tsuna and the rest of his family fell back into the normal routine of school. It was amazing how everything went back to normal so quickly. The brown-haired decimo was currently sleeping peacefully in his bed, that was until Reborn gave him a roundhouse kick to his face, sending him flying off the bed. "Oww!" Tsuna yelled, "what was that for!?"

"You forgot to set your alarm clock, dame-Tsuna. Now you're late for school." Before Tsuna had any time to ask why Reborn didn't just wake him up earlier, he stumbled his way to his closet and bathroom, grabbing clothes and quickly dressing for the day. Reborn smirked and pulled out a tiny cell phone from his pocket, and dialed Dino's number. The ceremony was set only in a matter of weeks. While Reborn worked on Tsuna, he needed to ask the bucking horse for a favour.

* * *

Hibari stepped out the school council room as the bell rang, his eyes immediately scanned the area for any students not in class. He, being the student council president, was an exception of course.

He was in a bit of a foul mood this morning. It had been too long since he'd been able to hit anyone. Things had been relatively peaceful since the end of the Checker Face situation. He spotted movement from the corner of his eye and his eyes lit up slightly at the sight of a familiar messy brown hair. Just the person he'd hoped to beat.

He tightened his grip on his baton and twirled it around once as he firmly walked up to Tsuna. "Late again, herbivore."

Tsuna froze in his spot as he looked up at Hibari who towered over him. Even after all this time fighting with and alongside Hibari, he was still scared of him. "I'm sorry, Hibari-san. I won't be late again!" He bowed and hoped that the skylark wouldn't beat him to death. Hell, Tsuna was lucky that he only walked away with a few bruises and no broken bones. Reborn had to step up before Hibari could inflict any damage, "Hibari, I would appreciate it if you fought Tsuna another time. He has a big day coming up, and he needs to look his best." The former-arcobaleno used his usual smile when giving advice to Hibari. The skylark seemed to respect him, as he should have.

Tsuna looked down at him with a confused look on his face, "eehhh?" If what Reborn said was true, why would he kick him earlier? What was Reborn hiding from him? The brunette felt someone tugging his arm, which was none other than Gokudera. The storm guardian went on his usual spiel about respect for his boss, and how he was a disgrace for letting Tsuna arrive late. While Tsuna just smiled warmly – the same sky class smile that could melt anyone's heart.

Hibari was more than ready to dismiss Tsuna's apologies and strike him anyway, but then Reborn stepped up. He lowered the tonfa and rolled his shoulders back. As powerful as he was, he held high respect for the infant, thus abiding by his wishes. 'Big day?' Hibari wondered, but not aloud, glaring at Tsuna as Gokudera bombarded his boss with praise.

He wondered what the infant meant by that. Had some other conflict come up in the mafia group? He almost hoped that was it.

Yamamoto joined the three soon after, greeting Tsuna cheerfully as he always did. Hibari was unsure on what he would do. He had two options: either go back to the student council room and take a nap, or sticking around a bit longer to perhaps hear about whatever Reborn had spoken of. Weighing the pros and cons of each, he decided on the latter.

Hibari disappeared without a goodbye and headed up towards the roof of the school building, figuring after a quick look out the window that it was nice enough weather for a nap up there. After effortlessly climbing the stairs he shut the door behind him and made his way to the railing, leaning his elbows onto it. He was feeling rather restless and wanted to fight someone rather than take a nap, but he didn't have much of a choice.

He peered over the school grounds before, looking for a victim, but he found none. Sighing, he turned and slid down into a sitting position. Perhaps the most disappointing thing about the past while was that he hadn't been able to have his match off with any one he had wanted to fight. Mukuro had mysteriously gone off somewhere, as usual, and no one knew of his whereabouts.

The bucking horse had run off back to Italy before Hibari had gotten a chance to confront him. He took a moment to wonder what Cavallone was doing there in the foreign land. Was he getting stronger? Hibari doubted it, but the thought slightly excited him none the less. Moments later, he found himself drifting off into a deep sleep.

* * *

Dino was in his office, going over paperwork another family faxed over to him. The blonde sighed and rested the palm of his hand against his cheek. After the mess with Checker Face, the bronco returned to Italy and had a pile of paperwork to conquer. "The perks of being a boss." Dino laughed quietly to himself. He looked over to the phone on his desk and realized it was ringing.

He decided to answer the phone, knocking over all the ordered papers in the process. He sighed heavily, realizing that his men weren't in the room. "I'm hopeless," he said before picking up the phone, "Dino Cavallone parlante (speaking)." When he heard the other voice on the end, he immediately relaxed and sat down on his chair.

"I have a favour to ask you, and I know you're probably busy in Italy… but it's important." Reborn said on the other end. He explained the situation Tsuna was in. Apparently the Ninth was sick and wasn't sure if he'd be able to make it. He wanted to personally give the title to Tsuna of Vongola decimo, and was willing to grant the brunette about a month to decide.

Therefore, he needed Dino to persuade Hibari to attend the important ceremony, while Reborn persuaded Tsuna. The former-arcobaleno told Dino that 'he was counting on him', which made Dino extremely nervous. He can't let the Ninth or Reborn down. After all, he had once managed to persuade the fussy allodola, so he could do it again.

When Dino ended the call between him and Reborn, he was fully determined to train Kyouya. This time, it would be much different. First he needed to persuade the skylark into actually going to the ceremony, and then drag him to the rehearsal and _make_ him listen. It sounded like too much for Kyouya. If he didn't have to do anything, then he wouldn't unless someone beat him or a fight was involved.

"Ahh, Kyouya. What am I going to do with you?" Dino smiled to himself, and paged Romario up in his office. When his right-hand man entered, Dino ordered to prepare his private jet as soon as possible, so he could arrive in Japan the next day. It was currently 9 AM in Italy, which meant that it was around 2 PM in Japan. Oh, Dino could just imagine his skylark taking control of his school (when he was actually taking a nap).

The Italian don informed Romario of the situation in Japan, and yet again, he would be away from his family (but he needed Romario there). Romario was always the one who flew with him to Japan. At first, Romario was reluctant to go back since they just returned two months ago, but eventually agreed with his boss. His right-hand man began to wonder how anyone could disobey someone with sky flames, especially Hibari.

* * *

A day and a half had gone by and still Hibari had not heard anything about what Reborn had mentioned, about what was going to happen with Tsunayoshi. He wasn't sure if it would even have anything to do with himself at all. Perhaps it was nothing, and he should stop worrying about it. He shuffled a bit in his seat and rested his palm in his hand, his elbow resting atop the schoolwork he had scattered across the desk. He rarely actually went to class, but he did do schoolwork occasionally, when he wanted to. He didn't think the teachers would pass him otherwise, despite being as intimidating as he was. He couldn't control adults as well as he could people around his age.

He glanced at the clock on the wall. It was a quarter to three now, close to the end of the school day.

Dino had arrived in Namimori the time that he expected, and made his way towards Namimori High School, alongside his right-hand man. Everyone looked at Dino as if he was a celebrity, with his odd style of clothing and the limo he drove around in. The bronco knew Namimori school inside and out, from all the battles that took place there and when he substituted as a teacher. Some people recognized him, girls especially, and he waved in response. But really, the only person he cared about was Kyouya.

Of course he cared about Tsuna too and the rest of the Vongola, but there was something about Kyouya. The haneuma (bronco) snuck his way through the roof of the school and passed the rest of the disciplinary committee. They all knew who he was anyway, from his fights with Hibari. Dino continued to ninja his way through the window, and saw his favourite skylark from behind in a chair. "Sleeping on the job, Kyouya?" He leaned against the wall casually.

Hibari startled as he heard the familiar voice from behind him. He immediately stood and spun around, grabbing for his tonfa as he did so. He blinked several times, registering the blonde's face. Haneuma? Well that explained how he'd managed to get so close without alerting Hibari.

"I thought you were in your home country. Did you come back to get bitten to death?" With that he smirked and readied his stance. "Perfect timing. I was just itching for someone to beat to a pulp." He neglected to mention that he'd been wanting to do so for a while. His pulse began to speed up in anticipation. The haneuma was always his favorite to fight, though he seldom got to do so. Dino was strong, unpredictable, and similar to Tsunayoshi in several annoying ways.

"Now, now, Kyouya. Can't we just have a peaceful conversation?" Dino held his bullwhip in his hands, ready to go in case Hibari tried anything. "I wouldn't want you to break anything in your precious office. That would look bad on the _president_, no?" Cavallone teased. Originally, he wasn't planning on messing with Kyouya, but looking at his face proved otherwise. He couldn't resist the temptation to see his favourite raven lose control.

Really, he wasn't sure why Reborn thought it was a great idea for him and Hibari to meet. Maybe the arcobaleno knew that Kyouya would instantly captivate Dino – well, of course he did! Who was he kidding? Reborn knew everything. Hibari had a way to excite him more than anyone else the bronco met, and he met _a lot_ of people as a mafia boss. Kyouya was like an addiction, a distraction from other problems. He didn't find Kyouya annoying or intimidating like most, in fact, quite the opposite really.

Hibari winced slightly at the mention of damaging the office. The haneuma had a point, and Namimori was Hibari's pride and joy. But at the moment he was simply feeling too edgy not to move. He'd worry about the damage later. And at that he sprung towards Dino, wielding his tonfa downwards toward the other with as much force as he could muster. One thing he loved about fighting Dino was that he could go all out. Even if the blonde had his clumsy moments and Hibari could land hits on him, he'd probably be able to avoid any serious damage. It was frustrating but exhilarating at the same time.

Dino really thought that Kyouya would be willing not to fight inside his own office, and take it outside. But that's exactly what Dino loved about his skylark; Kyouya was difficult to understand, unpredictable, a man of few words, but _so many_ actions. The haneuma could feel the coldness in every swing of Hibari's tonfa. When he looked down into those cobalt eyes, anger radiated into his own. The bucking horse held his whip in his hands, blocking Hibari's swings one by one, and managed to wrap the whip around Hibari's wrists.

Hibari had enjoyed the sparring until Dino had managed to wrap the whip around his hand. Taking a moment to catch his breath, he attempted to pull away from the tight grip of the whip. Soon enough, he had begun breathing normally again. There were ways he could escape the temporary hold, of course, but that really would cause damage to his office, but now that he'd gotten at least some of his energy out he felt more level-headed.

Even if he pursued this fight here he would have lost, as much as he hated to admit it. Perhaps later when they were out in the open it would be a better showdown. He stared into the haneuma's golden brown eyes defiantly, showing him he wasn't giving in, just putting this off. Hibari was still in control. Well, at least as far as he was concerned.

"Going soft on me, Kyouya?" The blonde teased in his usual tone. Even saying Kyouya itself was a disgrace; Dino knew he was the only person who dared to use that name.

Hibari ignored Dino's attempt to annoy him by calling him by his first name, though it did succeed to irritate him, and he knew Dino wouldn't stop. "What 'peace' did you come here to speak of?" Hibari kept his eyes locked on Cavallone's. "I wouldn't want to beat a man when his head's not in the fight is all." he taunted.

Dino kept his hold on the skylark's wrists, much like Hibari's own handcuffs he loved to use. As much as Dino hated to admit it, he loved the surrendering look on mister stubborn himself. The haneuma took mental photographs for later, milking the memory frame by frame. "So now you want to talk, huh?" Cavallone ignored the last sentence. He was too focused on resisting the urge to make Hibari beg for mercy further, but that wouldn't do much, now would it?

It was a miracle Kyouya was even willing to listen. Out of the generosity in his heart, he let go of Hibari's wrists and spoke quickly, knowing he only had a few moments to entertain the skylark. As fussy as he was, he was also impatient. "Vongola Ninth isn't doing so well, so he wants to give Tsuna the ceremony for Vongola Decimo at the end of the month. I need you to go, Kyouya."

Dino pleaded, "it's just two hours of your time, maybe less. I'm not sure of the details," he started, knowing that would piss Hibari off. He liked to know as much detail as possible, something about Japanese etiquette he appreciated. "Please, Kyouya. You know you're not going to get rid of me if you say no. So, make this easier on yourself for once."

Hibari thought about trying to make his tonfa kiss Dino's jaw as he let him go, but then he began to talk, and so Hibari listened, thinking of what he'd do if what Cavallone had to say wasn't important. His eyes narrowed as Dino finished. So this must have been what the infant was talking about. He looked away in disinterest. A ceremony for Tsunayoshi?

"What does that have to do with me? I could care less what happens to that weakling or the rest of the mafia." He walked over to the sofa in the room and plopped down on it lazily. "To think you came all this way to waste my time with such rubbish." Not that he wanted Dino to leave, either. Not without a real fight first anyway.

Dino opened and closed his mouth a few times, really wanting to yell at Hibari, but he knew that wouldn't get him anywhere. That was one very amazing thing about having the sky attribute; it meant his ability to control his anger was the very reason why he was a mafia boss. It was also the very reason why he was madly in love with Kyouya. But how could Kyouya say that Tsuna was weak?

More importantly, how does he not realize how much of a major asset he is to the Vongola? "Kyouya, I've said this before. You are a guardian of that important ring on your finger. It's what unites the entire Vongola family. Without the Vongola, you wouldn't have gained this much strength." Dino said cautiously. He knew that Hibari hated anyone questioning his strength. "You know it's true; you've gained so much for the Vongola family. Furthermore, without you, a lot of the Vongola would die or eventually fall without you. Isn't it your duty to protect students of this school?"

Hibari's eyes darted angrily to Dino at the mention of his strength, but then calmed when he mentioned the students of Namimori. "I protect them when they are in this school, but what they do outside is none of my responsibility." He crossed one leg over the other and draped an arm around the back of the sofa. "It's only a ceremony, isn't it? I have no reason to participate in trivialities like that."

He wondered honestly why Dino was trying so hard to convince him when it was obvious he wouldn't go. Was it really so important for him to be there? Perhaps one of the dignitaries had put him up to this.

Dino really didn't have much time to waste. If Kyouya was going to register any information, it would be now. When Dino had his attention and they were in a controlled environment where he didn't want to break anything. Otherwise, Kyouya would barely complete a sentence. At this point, he was willing to get down on his hands and knees and _beg_ the skylark.

Obviously that was completely ridiculous as a boss, and anyone who saw would think of him as a disgrace, specifically Hibari himself. The cloud guardian didn't give into any display of weakness, which was why Dino always stood his ground. He was always ready for a fight, which was the only way Kyouya would listen. "You like Japanese etiquette, right? Well, this would be one example.

It's your _duty_ as a guardian to attend the ceremony. I'm sure you don't have to do anything, you just have to stand there and look professional." He would give Hibari any reason to go, anything the raven would like to hear. In the back of his mind, he kept thinking about how much the Ninth and Reborn counted on him. If he couldn't persuade his pupil, how much was he worth?

Hibari sat there as the haneuma tried further to convince him. Still there seemed little reason for him to actually go. He hated crowds and although he had seen for himself that Tsunayoshi was strong, he would still never acknowledge that runt being his boss. He examined his sleeve cuff for no particular reason as he thought, hoping his silence was beginning to get to Dino. After a moment he finally glared up at him, a glint in his eyes. "Then fight me. Outside. Now. If you win, I'll attend." He pushed himself from the sofa, awaiting Cavallone's answer. Maybe this way he would fight seriously. He seemed desperate for Hibari to go after all.

Dino blinked a few times, "what just happened?" The blonde smiled, "That's my Kyouya; always unpredictable, but when it comes to a fight, he's in no matter the circumstance." The Italian don considered himself lucky as he walked outside, bullwhip in his hand. "Kyouya, you realize your school might get damaged, right?" But it would seem that the skylark didn't care with the way he lunged forward, tonfas glowing with cloudy rage.

"You never cease to amaze me." Dino complimented playfully. Sky class flames extended his own weapon as he whipped it around several corners, eventually leading to Kyouya like a snake. Fighting with Kyouya was an endless battle of short and long ranged tricks. It was never Dino's intention to inflict too much damage on the raven, but he needed to win, for Tsuna's sake, the Ninth, and Reborn.

Hibari was pleased that the bronco had agreed, and so quickly too. He didn't seem to want to mess around today, and Hibari was thankful for that. As soon as they were outside he lunged at him, encasing his weapons in purple cloud flames. He swung quickly and fiercely, trying to get a hit in, but Dino's abilities hadn't rusted and there were no openings. Getting out the boxes would likely cause a lot of commotion and damage, but at the moment he was willing to make that risk.

Realizing his tonfa wouldn't be enough, he leaped back and removed the purple box from his belt swiftly, pressing his middle finger with the cloud ring into it. Instantly his box animal, the hedgehog Roll, appeared. Immediately he called forth his cambio forma: Alaude's Handcuffs, and the hedgehog formed into spiky black handcuffs, encased in purple flames. He twirled them around one finger, watching the haneuma closely. He had never had a chance to use this technique on Dino before.

Dino watched carefully as Hibari's hedgehog morphed into black handcuffs with cambio forma. At that moment, all he could think of was how kinky Kyouya looked twirling around his handcuffs. If this were any other day, he would have made a joke – but not this time. This was incredibly different.

The fate of Tsuna was on the line, and with Kyouya's new power-up, he needed to use his full strength. It pained him to use this power on Kyouya, but his goal was not to kill him. It would take a lot to kill Kyouya anyway, which made it easier to fight the skylark.

Dino pulled out a box weapon from his parka and injected sky flames into it, revealing Scuderia, his horse. He walked up to it and pet the long orange mane, still clutching his whip in desperation. Similar to Tsuna, Dino had a difficult time fighting his pupils seriously. He had to continuously remind himself that next to his little brother, Kyouya was the strongest in the Vongola. But even Kyouya didn't stand a chance if Tsuna really went all-out. "Are you sure you want to do this, Kyouya?"

Hibari was pleased when he saw Dino release his box weapon. The horse, glowing brightly in the orange and yellow flames, was always impressive to look at. The beast let off a majestic and powerful aura and suited his owner well. Hibari circled slowly. The hardest part was finding a proper opening to clamp the cuffs on. When he was as he was able to, the haneuma would be his. He quickly sprinted around the blonde and lunged forward, hoping to be speedy enough to catch him in a blind spot.

Dino ducked down when Hibari went flying at him from behind, and wrapped the whip around the skylark's slender legs. He stood up as fast as possible, knowing that it wouldn't be a great idea to get close to Kyouya with cuffs in his hands. One wrong move and he could find himself buried in handcuffs. "Scuderia, Pegasso Super Salto Volante." He commanded the horse, causing the majestic horse to grow wings, therefore transforming her into a Pegasus. The blonde climbed on Scuderia, who left a large space between him and Hibari. The Italian don untied the whip from Kyouya's legs, "you're not the only one with hidden tricks."

Hibari grimaced as the whip wound around his legs, causing him to fall back hard onto his elbows. Before he could react, Dino was already in the air on the horse, now a Pegasus. He cursed under his breath but reacted quickly and commanded his box weapon to transform back into a hedgehog. At least Roll would have plenty of flames to feed off with an opponent this strong.

The skylark activated Roll's Propagation ability and it began feeding on the flames around it, both his and Dino's. Within seconds the spikes on its bag had grown exponentially and it hovered in the air. Hibari wasted no time in using the spikes as leverage, moving swiftly and gaining height, trying to close the gap between himself and Dino. When he was close, he swung at one of the shin's of the Pegasus with one hand, using the other to hold on to the spikes protruding from Roll.

The Pegasus neighed with pain at the blow to her shin. Somehow, she still stayed up in the air, pure orange flames shining brightly. A blow like that wouldn't bring a sky box weapon down. If Dino didn't have his men around, he would have definitely fallen off Scuderia with the moment of off-balance. Quickly, Dino had wrapped his whip around Hibari's torso and waited.

It only took a moment to hear cracking emitting from Kyouya's box weapon, as it turned to stone and crashed to the ground. Kyouya seemed to forget that anything that even touched Scuderia's wings turned to ash. However, Dino was not as ready as he thought he was for that much impact, so he ended up falling with the skylark. "Wahhh!" Dino yelled and tugged on the whip to bring Hibari closer, wrapping his arms around the raven's body and turned him around so he would receive most of the impact.

Hibari hissed in annoyance when the whip wrapped around his torso. His opponent had probably done it to spare Hibari from the effects of the Pegasus, but Hibari could only think of how disappointed he was that his box weapon was gone and he hadn't been able to so much as get another hit in for it. He'd wanted to at least get one shot at Dino's pretty boy face before sacrificing that much.

Things didn't seem to be going in Hibari's favor. He struggled to free himself as he heard the crack of his box weapon crashing to the ground below. It would probably take a long time for Roll to recover from that. Perhaps he should have been more conservative.

He struggled more, but the impact was too near and seemed to off-balance Dino and his stallion. Hibari gasped as he felt himself falling, the whip still attached. His breath cut short by a tugging motion of the whip, and then he found himself in Dino's embrace, both of them plummeting to the ground some twenty feet below.

Before Hibari could react, they met the ground, Dino hitting first. Even with the protective cushioning it was enough for Hibari's remaining consciousness to escape him, and his vision immediately went black.


	2. Audacious

**AN:** A special thanks goes out to Heitan who reviewed the last chapter. As always, I feel incredibly blessed when I see reviews, and equally ecstatic to see silent readers, as well as those who take the time to follow/favourite the story. I really hope you enjoy this chapter, and if you find any errors, please don't hesitate to notify me. While writing this, I am about ready to pass out... but I try to convince myself it's all worth it!

Info: My editor is Blaze Takishima. Thank you so much for editing in a timely fashion. Isikaru (on deviantart) is still playing as Hibari in this chapter.

Disclaimer: I do not own KHR! If I did, there would be a bunch of gayness goin' on...

_Chapter Two: Audacious_

Tsuna heard the loud crashing sound from his classroom. His hyper intuition told him something was off since the moment Hibari and Dino started fighting, but he elected to dismiss it. Even though his clairvoyance of such situations proved flawless more often than not.

"It came from the roof!"

The brunette exclaimed loudly and blatantly. Yamamoto and Gokudera stood up in a flash to follow their boss to the roof. At that moment, Tsuna hadn't thought about the consequences of leaving the classroom in a hurry. This happened a lot, withstanding the duties of a mafia boss. He was often forced to choose between school and the well-being of his famiglia. For Tsuna, the decision came naturally and easily. He wouldn't let his friends suffer over the necessities of his own life, which validated precisely why he was chosen to become Vongola the Tenth. As soon as Tsuna opened the door to the roof, his eyes widened at the sight and everyone else gasped.

"Hibari-san, Dino-san!" The brown-haired teen rushed over to their side, witnessing Scuderia whimpering over his owner.

"My guess is that they fell off Scuderia." Reborn frowned and tilted his fedora over his eyes. Vongola's paramedics arrived immediately, wasting no time in healing the two men. Meanwhile, Reborn tended to all the school complications while illusionist's worked on restoring the school to normal.

* * *

Hibari groaned as he started to gain consciousness. He forced his heavy eyelids open to find himself staring at a bright white ceiling. He felt awful, his whole body ached. He sat up, rubbing the bridge of his nose with the hand that seemed easiest to move, the rest of his senses catching up.

_"Hibari!"_

He heard a voice loudly exclaim and looked around. The figure of Tsunayoshi appeared, standing up noisily from the chair he'd been sitting on. Hibari looked around the room.

A hospital?

Tsunayoshi? Why was he here?

He examined the room further, trying his best to focus. His cobalt eyes widened at the sight of the bed a few yards from his, or rather its occupant.

Dino Cavallone.

Memories of their battle came back rushing into his mind and he put the pieces together.

"You're awake!" Tsunayoshi went on, his voice full of worry and relief. Hibari didn't spare him more than a glance.

He looked over to Dino. The haneuma seemed to be in not the best shape. He was wrapped up in many bandages, some of which spotted with blood, and an oxygen mask hooked to his unconscious face.

Hibari looked away as he felt something was pinching at his chest. He felt angry, more angry than he'd felt in a long time. Why had that idiot protected him to that extent? Surely he'd have been able to refrain from sustaining that much damage if he hadn't of covered for his opponent like that.

_What kind of idiot..._

Hibari clenched his other fist and was met with a sharp pain. He looked down to find his upper arm and wrist wrapped up in a thick cast. His wrist seemed to be either broken or severely sprained. He wasn't sure which. The rest of him seemed to be alright though, nothing bad apart from some bruising and torn muscles.

"B-But Hibari-san! You have to stay here. Your injuries haven't healed all the way yet—" Tsuna stuttered. His guardian still had a broken wrist, but lucky that Dino had saved him from worse injuries.

* * *

A week passed by. Every day was a struggle to detain Hibari in the hospital room.

"P-Please." Tsunayoshi whined.

In this passed week, Reborn never faltered to cause progressive guilt on the young Vongola. He regularly reminded Tsuna that Hibari and Dino fought for him, and Dino nearly _died_ if it wasn't for sun-class flames and the generosity of his famiglia. Tsuna felt horribly depressed each waking moment of the day, knowing that his good friend almost died because of him. He still didn't feet like he was fit to be the boss of such a strong group of people.

Some nights he would sleep on the side of Dino's bed, praying that he would feel better, like none of this ever happened.

Vongola Tenth stepped out of the room before he broke down for the upteenth time.

"The longer you struggle, the longer it'll take to heal, Hibari. Your school performance will decrease if you don't rest." The wise former-arcobaleno stated.

Reborn knew that school was the most important thing for Hibari, especially the disciplinary committee.

"Hmph." Hibari turned his head to look away.

Reborn also knew how to play all the right cards when talking to him. That's one of the reasons why Hibari respected him leaps beyond others.

* * *

Dino could hear people talking loudly—

Tsuna? Reborn?

And, oh God, a wave of relief washed over him. He could hear Kyouya's voice too. That meant Kyouya was safe.

It sounded like he was up and about, as he should have been. That made him smile.

So wait, how could he hear all of them?

Wasn't he dead?

The bronco's hazel eyes slowly fluttered open. It was extremely difficult to see and to keep his eyes open, for that matter. The drugs overwhelmed him and commanded him to sleep; he also couldn't feel a thing. Good thing he had been in many hospitals due to many fights, or else he would have fallen into a longer coma.

"That's right. You should stay here, Kyouya." Dino said weakly.

Hibari spun around at the sound of Dino's voice. _Finally._ He was beginning to think he would never wake up. Although he had fully intended to leave this place before that happened. He wanted to stab all sorts of insults at the blonde now that he could hear him, but he couldn't seem to get anything to come out, so he only stared.

"So you're awake." Reborn said to Dino. "That was quite a nasty fall you had. As the head of the Chiavarone Famiglia, you might want to be more careful in the future."

Speaking of his Italian family, his right hand man, Romario came rushing in from his station outside the door as soon as he heard the conversation. He looked more, if not the same relieved as Tsuna did. "Boss, how are you feeling?"

Dino smiled brightly; he wouldn't let the fact that he felt like shit show, especially not around Kyouya. Maybe if Romario was the only one in the room, he could really feel comfortable.

Hibari looked mad, as expected. Dino wasn't expecting that he would be all sunshine and rainbows, after knowing Dino had saved him. Well... Hibari was never sunshine and rainbows to start with, but Dino could still tell the difference between his moods.

"I feel fine, thank you. And cheer up, little bro." He could see the delighted spark on Tsuna's face, in contrast with Hibari. The small brunette didn't have to say much, the look on his face said everything. "It was my own careless mistake, I'm sorry. If you don't mind, can I speak to Kyouya alone for a moment?"

Tsuna glanced at the floor as Dino spoke. He felt a little embarrassed that Dino could see right through him, that he could tell he blamed himself for what had happened. Still, he always appreciated that Dino's kindness. Dino was one of the few that seemed to understand him.

He nodded hastily at Dino's request to speak to Hibari alone, and moved to leave, but then paused looking from one to the other, wondering if this was a bad idea. But then Hibari glared at Tsuna, a look in his eyes that seemed to say "get on with it". I guess he had things to say to Dino, too. Reborn and Romario had taken their leave, so Tsuna figured it would be alright, despite the tense atmosphere between the two. He nodded to Dino again, smiling, and left the room.

Hibari folded his arms best he could with his wrapped up wrist and stared into the adjacent wall. "Why did you save me? Do you have some kind of death wish, fool?" He growled angrily as soon as the door closed behind the others.

Dino had to laugh at the death wish comment. Hibari didn't know it, but he was actually funny sometimes... or maybe only to Dino. Anyone else that laughed at him would be "bitten to death" and that phrase sounded sexual since the moment he heard it.

Hibari ground his teeth when the haneuma started laughing at him. What did he take him for? No one else dared to laugh at him so shamelessly.

"Why did I save you? It was my own careless mistake, and it wasn't my intention to put you in a coma, or anything worse." Dino glanced at the ground, and back into Kyouya's cobalt eyes. "I've said this before, Kyouya, and I'll say it a thousand times more until you believe me; I love you." The blonde declared with zero hesitation in his voice.

Hibari's eyes widened for a short moment at the confession, then narrowed angrily again, before Dino could notice he hoped. Yes, he'd heard it before, but of course he'd never be stupid enough to take words like that seriously. Never from the mouth of this man.

There were so many things he wanted to shout at Dino, so many insults and frustrations. But of course he wouldn't give Dino the pleasure of letting him know he'd stirred him that much.

"Enough." Hibari breathed out harshly. He marched up to Dino and grabbed his shirt by the collar, staring fiercely into his golden eyes. Firmly stating syllable by syllable. "I never asked you to save me. Don't ever pull a stunt like that again. _Ever_."

He had never been this angry before, and wasn't sure why. Of course it bothered him that his opponent had more or less saved his life. It was a great disgrace. But more than that, he couldn't seem to let it go. He wanted to hear Dino promise never to do something so stupid again. He didn't want to leave this room until he made Dino say so.

Dino didn't really care what Hibari was saying-something about saving him. It was a mix of the drugs and his one-track mind when it came to Kyouya. Now, as far as the bronco could tell, Hibari was dangerously close to his face and the only logical action was to kiss him.

"Is that a love confession, Kyouya?" The blonde teased because Hibari grabbed his shirt after he just confessed to loving him. With Kyouya, you could never tell what he was feeling. He _never_ let weakness show, aside from when he slept, maybe.

Dino hoped he could see that one day, to run his hands through black hair and stare into Hibari's eyes lovingly, and his love _returned_. Or, maybe that was too out of character for Hibari. Dino was fine if the skylark glared at him for the rest of his life.

Good thing drugs existed, or else moving his arm would be incredibly painful. He wouldn't have bothered if this wasn't a chance to kiss Kyouya himself. This was the closest he'd ever gotten willing, and Dino wasn't going to let that go to waste, under any circumstance. He removed the mask from his mouth and grabbed a fist full of Kyouya's hair. He leaned the skylark down with as much strength he could muster, and brushed his lips passed Hibari's.

Hibari froze when Dino grasped his hair and brushed his lips against his own.

Was he _kissing_ him?

He blinked several times, wide-eyed. It finally registered and he scrambled to push himself away from Dino. With Dino's injuries and the drugs in Dino's system it wasn't hard to free himself.

He stumbled back several steps, still shocked. A blush began to burn at his cheeks and he wiped his mouth with the back of his hand, keeping it there to hide his face. His eyebrows furrowed angrily as he remembered where he was in the conversation and he scowled in annoyance, letting his hand drop.

Was Dino even listening to him? Did he even care about how seriously close he'd come to dying? For what? To save Hibari's life?

Hibari spun around and stormed out of the room, slamming the door behind him and speeding past Tsuna and the others waiting outside it.

The kiss only lasted a moment, maybe even less than he thought...but that didn't leave Dino with less satisfaction. He felt more satisfied than some of the happiest moments in his life, from such a simple kiss. Who knew that lips touching lips could feel so good, yet so bittersweet? The bronco hoped that it wouldn't be the last time he got to kiss the skylark. He always wanted to feel _so_ _much_ _more_ of Kyouya than normal, and that feeling only intensified with the kiss.

Dino was on cloud nine; no amount of kisses, touches, or even sex he had in the past could compare to that one kiss with Kyouya. Dino was determined to get what he wanted out of Kyouya, even if that meant letting the skylark beat him to a pulp. He didn't care, messing with Kyouya was no longer his top priority, he'd take advantage of any moment he had.

Tsuna widened his eyes as Hibari suddenly fumed passed him, hiding his face and-was he blushing? No, maybe he had a fever? Why? More importantly, how was Dino? The brunette walked inside of the room and saw Dino sleeping peacefully with the oxygen mask on his face.

"What just happened?" Tsuna asked and looked at Reborn, who held a smug smirk on his face.

* * *

A couple of weeks later, Dino felt much better and he was even working on muscle therapy. The injuries he suffered were nothing new; he actually suffered worse injuries and had come close to dying many, many times. It was all worth it to see Kyouya again, however. He would repeat the fall again and again if it meant it was the only way to save Kyouya's life. Come to think of it, there was nothing he wouldn't do for the skylark.

His drive to see and feel Kyouya again helped the bronco feel better. It aided his ability to eat all the disgusting, yet healthy hospital food.

Time was up, and Tsuna had decided to (finally) go along with becoming the new boss. How could he not while drowning in guilt? Reborn congratulated Dino for his hard work, and just hoped that Hibari would show up to the ceremony.

The ceremony came nearer and nearer as the days flew by.

Hibari's bad mood had not subsided at all since that day in the hospital, but he couldn't help notice the day approaching. He didn't want to go, by any means. Though the match had ended badly, and one could say it wasn't enough to declare a winner, Hibari knew that Dino had the upper hand, at least before the accident happened.

He swung his legs down from the student council sofa he was lounging on and rested his chin in his hands. His one wrist was still in a cast though it was nearly healed.

He decided he would go to the ceremony. Dino, as big a fool as he was, had obliged Hibari with the fight he asked for. And more than that, Hibari was dying to see him again so that he could beat the life out of him, now that he was probably on the mend.

Several days later, the day of Tsuna's ceremony approached at last. Tsuna hurried to tie his necktie but Reborn criticized his sloppy job with a smirk on his face.

This was crazy; he was really going to do this. He was officially going to take over the Vongola Famiglia. He shook his head as if that would make things seem more real, but it didn't help. He'd already been through a lot… Perhaps after the ceremony his life wouldn't change. Maybe it was just a title for show.

At least he hoped. He'd had it with mafia trouble and danger to his friends. Several hours passed and the ceremony approached. Tsuna finally arrived via a black limousine, accompanied by Reborn and some tough looking guys in black suits, all Tsuna had never met before. They seemed to show Tsuna the utmost respect.

He stepped out of the car nervously, soon after surrounded by his family. Gokudera arrived first of course, followed by Yamamoto, Chrome and all the others who knew of the ceremony. He even spotted Hibari glaring at him from his aloof place in the back. He wore a suit as well, much to his demise, simple and black like most of the others.

As the ceremony arrived, Dino made sure to dress as sharply as he could. He even bought a new suit, and Romario wondered how he was even standing and walking with his injuries. Along with Ryohei, Romario had healed him with as much energy as possible. Dino asked this of the sun class suitors because he needed to watch his little bro in decent health.

Ryohei went on this whole freak out, as usual, about how extreme it was that Tsuna was Dino's little brother. The Italian don had to explain to Ryohei that Tsuna, was not in fact, his younger brother. It was only a nickname.

The blonde was equally excited to see Hibari and Tsuna, but sad that the Ninth was dying and everyone knew that. It was especially difficult for Tsuna, and Iemitsu, since they were related to the Ninth. He couldn't imagine having to receive an award from his sick Grandpa.

It was sad how Tsuna didn't have much time to get to know his Grandpa. Dino wasn't sure if that had something to do with being Japanese, or the fact that Vongola Ninth was extremely busy. He didn't blame Tsuna for being so reluctant to take the title of Vongola Decimo. It was blatantly obvious that Tsuna hated Iemitsu for never being around.

Most people thought that Tsuna was too nice and didn't fit being the boss of one of the biggest mafia organizations. Dino knew that Tsuna would make a great leader ever since he met him; a boss didn't require a murderous attitude. The brunette's attitude was the exact reason why all these people loved him. He had persuaded _Kyouya_, (which was difficult enough,) along with Mukuro and some of the worst people Dino had ever met. Even _Byakuran_ fought alongside Tsuna, the same man that nearly destroyed the world a few months ago.

The blonde stopped his train of thought as the limo halted, and out walked Dino like a girl ready to meet the latest boy band. The rest of his family stepped out of the limo after him, and tried to keep up as Dino socialized with literally everyone he saw.

Hibari watched from afar for a while until he finally spotted Dino's familiar bright hair appear from behind a limo door. Hibari already felt his anger arising again and strode over to him, though he was surrounded by the time he got there. Without regard to whoever was around, or the man's injuries for that matter, he snatched Dino's wrist tightly and pulled him out of the group, leaving many of the people looking offended or confused.

He pulled Dino into a small alley way, between the main building and a smaller side wing. He released his wrist and wasted no time in throwing a right straight, straight into Dino's jaw. "I forgot to give you that parting gift last time," he explained sarcastically.

Dino held true to his word, since he _knew_ that Hibari would find him and pull him away angrily, and he _also_ knew that Kyouya would probably beat him up. That's exactly why he had Ryohei and Romario heal him to the best of their ability.

The blonde barely flinched as Hibari's punch connected with his jaw, leaving a metallic taste of blood in his mouth. He quickly wrapped his whip around Kyouya's body, all the way down to his legs. The whip snugly squeezed Hibari with determination and sky flames.

Hibari grunted when the whip squeezed around his body. He hadn't really expected Dino to fight back, at least not here.

"That was a mistake, Kyouya. I remember the last kiss we shared, and you know what I noticed? You kissed me back." He pulled Hibari even closer with the whip, "that's right, it wasn't my imagination."

Obviously Hibari didn't kiss him back, Dino knew that, he just wanted to see the shocked expression on Kyouya's face.

The skylark's eyes went wide at the mention of the kiss. He didn't want to hear about that. He didn't want to think about it. And what did he mean, kiss him back? He blinked, confused, his cheeks turning pink as he thought about it. Hibari had kissed Dino back? He didn't remember doing such a thing, nor had any reason whatsoever to do so, but he couldn't remember clearly whether it was true or not.

His eyes flickered across Dino's features as he tried to read his motives. First to his eyes, then his lips, for some reason. Hibari's blush deepened and he began to feel uncomfortable, a rather foreign feeling for him. He squirmed a bit, trying to get loose so he could lengthen the distance between he and Dino. "I...didn't..." he denied, more to himself than Dino as he continued to struggle against the tight whip.

The blush on Hibari's face turned Dino on more than expected, but he couldn't lose focus, not now. The skylark actually _believed _that he kissed Dino back.

Now, _that_ was surprising. Usually Hibari denied everything he had to say; maybe kissing Kyouya got through to him. Maybe he actually believed that he loved him? And... maybe Hibari had his own feelings for Dino? The Italian boss shook his head, riding his hopeful thoughts.

"Oh, yes you did. Let me refresh your memory." As if Hibari had no choice, the blonde leaned forward and locked lips with the cloud guardian. He kept a firm hold on the whip with his right hand, while his left hand bent Hibari down all the way on to the floor, not really caring that they were in an alley.

Hibari's breath hitched in his throat when Dino kissed him.

He hated this, hated how it robbed him of control. Like before, it was hard for him to keep his thoughts coherent. Why was Dino doing this? Did he want to mess with Hibari that much? Before he knew what was even going on, Dino had lowered him to the floor, their lips still locked, the whip still restraining him.

* * *

"VRRAAAAAAAIII!" Squalo yelled as soon as he stepped out of the limo, earning the attention of everyone, especially Yamamoto who seemed to be the _only_ person excited to see him. "When will this ceremony start!?"

"Ushishishi, Squalo's making this about him again." Bel laughed, looking around at all the allies of the Vongola, including the Shimon family who destroyed this ceremony last time. They could do it again if they really wanted, Bel didn't really care– it was fun to see everyone's reactions.

"You like hearing yourself talk too, Senpaiii." Fran scolded with a bored tone.

"Tch, shut up apple-head. You have yet to replace Mammon; go back home and live in a tree."

* * *

A large shout interrupted Kyouya's thoughts.

Regaining himself and his surroundings, his eyes snapped back open and he pulled his head sideways, breaking the kiss. "What the hell are you doing!?" He half-shouted, feeling almost embarrassed about what they were doing in public, although he had not initiated it.

"I wanted to clear the air, about who's in control here. Let's not forget who saved who last time, so I would say you owed me." He knew everything he was saying would piss Hibari off and humiliate him. It was the same feeling the skylark felt when Mukuro dominated him.

If Dino could think clearly, he would not say these things to Kyouya in a million years. He loved him, really.

But hunger after he kissed him exploded.

It was like a vampire's first taste of blood; he just couldn't get enough of Hibari's lips.

He tasted like green tea, the Japanese drink he liked. Like anything else about Hibari, the love for his country oozed out of every fiber. The love Hibari felt for his country was like the love Dino felt, except entirely different. His fingertips burned against Kyouya's smooth, cold skin. The Italian boss felt like he was on fire.

Hibari could feel the anger boiling up inside him at the haneuma's words. About who was in control? _Owed _him? Hibari was already suffering enough having to live with the fact that Dino had saved him, and now he _owed_ him for it? It was something he should have never allowed to happen.

He felt the whip slacken ever so slightly and took his chance, focusing his powerful flames around the weak spot and causing the whip to unravel enough for him to quickly maneuver his way out of the whip's hold.

He smacked away Dino's hand harshly and scrambled to his feet, breathing harder than he should have been. He wanted to hit Dino again, maybe a dozen more times, but didn't want to brave getting wound up in the whip again. Not right now. He needed to clear his head first.

"I'm here, aren't I? I owe you nothing!" He spat and glared Dino up and down, keeping his guard. He wasn't sure what Dino would do anymore. The haneuma had been acting strange, what with kissing him. _Twice._

Dino turned over and sat on the ground, looking up at Kyouya. The blonde wasn't really sure how to respond to the skylark, for the first time.

Usually a witty remark escaped his lips or he could improv something to say, but deep down he knew that Hibari was right.

Dino didn't know what came over him, telling Hibari that he owed him and reminded the raven that he saved him. When really, Hibari didn't owe him anything. Dino only followed orders from Reborn, not wanting to fight Hibari in the first place, and made a mistake that almost killed _both_ of them. That didn't count anywhere close to a favour; if anything, Hibari did _him_ a favour just by showing up.

The bronco felt like he deserved Kyouya to punish him, so why wouldn't he hit him? The cloud guardian never had a problem with expressing his anger towards him before. He finally stood up, throwing his whip to the side and stood with his arms wide open. "Go ahead, Kyouya. I know you want to, I've humiliated you more than necessary." He stared at Hibari with loving, kind eyes, waiting for him to move.

* * *

In the near distance, another black limo drove up and out poured several more people. The Shimon Famiglia it appeared. Enma stepped out first, followed by Adelheid, Kaoru, and Julie. Adel and Julie looked to be arguing about something, as usual. Meanwhile Enma scanned the area, looking a bit like a lost puppy.

Tsuna paced around in his private dressing room, looking at himself in the mirror excessively. "I can do this, I can do this." His eyes tried to match what he was telling himself, but with one look at him, anyone could tell he was nervous. He was always uneasy around crowds, major stage-fright, and not to forget his clumsy tendencies. The brunette looked out the window through a crack in the curtain, seeing Enma. Tsuna had insisted that the Shimon family should have been invited, and the Ninth trusted Tsuna's wishes, though everyone else was reluctant.

* * *

Hibari watched reluctantly as Dino threw his weapon aside and opened his arms, inviting Hibari to hit him.

Hibari's eyes darted around his face. Honestly, what was he up to? The way he was acting so unpredictable made Hibari feel a little wary of the haneuma. Not that he was afraid of him, of course not. He just wasn't sure what the best move was to make.

But if Dino wanted to be hit, well, he'd have no problem obliging with that. Hibari had little qualms about hitting a defenseless man.

Hibari clenched his fists several times as he silently scrutinized, then took several long steps forward and swung his fist as hard as he could into Dino's gut.

Then, before Dino could recover, he grabbed his shirt and pulled him down into a clumsy kiss. He didn't know what the hell he was even doing, but it seemed to be the proper thing to do somehow. He broke the kiss shortly after. His lips and whole body felt hot and twitchy, but he didn't linger on thinking of why.

He stared headstrong into Dino's eyes. "Now we're even." He declared, despite the statement not really making any sense. He felt a little foolish after doing it, but hid behind false confidence. If this was about control, he'd definitely never let Dino get the better of him.


End file.
